A call to arms; the Pygmalion Affect and the School Library

When we reflect back on our school years, the teachers that we remember are the ones that lifted us up. That see us for more than what we are, the encouraging words of Mrs Tessarge in Year 8 History set me on my path to study Arts at University. But the teachers that were strict had their place as well. They struck fear into students. They demanded that you try hard and their expectations were indisputable. Everyone knew that Mr Jamison was not to be toyed with when it came to the correct uniform! He had drawn the line in the sand and he never wavered from it.

But if we blend the two, then we have an encouraging teacher that sets high expectations (Spiegel, 2012) and these teachers make a positive impact on student performance (Ellison, 2015). A colleague at a former school had the amazing ability to lift students up and expect more from them at the same time. He didn't just pay lip service to the "I'm amazing" Lorna Jane generation, he made sure that his comments were justified and genuine; "You are amazing because .....". 

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I've been reading a lot about leadership in organisations and as a result reflecting back on the leaders that brought the best out in me over the years. I came across this article on "Pygmalion in Library Leadership" (Matthews, 2012) where he talks about the habit of Librarians, and also teachers, to say "I'm just a Librarian" or "I'm just a teacher". In order for Teacher Librarians to take their rightful place in schools as curriculum engineers, they need to walk the talk. They are not "just teacher librarians", they are curriculum designers, learning engineers, motivators, organisational specialists, information disseminators.

The role of a Teacher Librarian in schools is going through a massive change at the moment.

When I first started teaching the TL was the quiet Librarian that helped those who came to them. The Library was quiet and the curriculum support was understated. As technology disruptors were introduced into schools, it has taken a while for Teacher Librarians to find their feet again in this changing educational landscape.  Only a few school library leaders managed to make this transition work for them; esteemed educators such as Suzette Boyd who worked at Methodist Ladies' College in the 1990's and wrote a book called "The Connected Library".

Now, our Teacher Librarians need to be fearless. We know that there is a direct link between a properly functioning school library and academic achievement, however schools are decreasing their funding of fully qualified Teacher Librarians.  We need a "call to arms"; we need to be proactive, supportive, researchers and enablers of evidenced based curriculum practices. Others will treat you the way that you perceive yourself (Matthews, 2018) and Teacher Librarians need to champion the good work that both they and their teaching teams are doing in schools. They need to "brand themselves" and carry the flag for curriculum innovation in their schools.

Don't be silent; a squeaky wheel gets the grease.


References:

Boyd, Suzette (2006). The connected library : a handbook for engaging users. Utopia Press, Hawthorn West, Vic

Ellison, K. (2015). Being Honest About the Pygmalion Effect. Retrieved from http://discovermagazine.com/2015/dec/14-great-expectations

Matthews, S. (2012). Pygmalion in Library Leadership. Retrieved from https://21stcenturylibrary.com/2012/09/07/pygmalion-in-library-leadership/

Spiegel, A. (2012). Teachers' Expectations Can Influence How Students Perform. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2012/09/18/161159263/teachers-expectations-can-influence-how-students-perform

Additional Information:

Rosenthal's Experiment and the Pygmalion Effect. Retrieved from https://sites.google.com/site/7arosenthal/home

Importance of Citation

There was a great article from Melbourne Uni (Martin & Angelito, 2018) this week about the most cited source on Wikipedia and it got me thinking about how we teach citation and referencing in our schools.

Citation and referencing has an important role not only in academic work but also from the perspective of teaching students about acknowledgement and gratitude.

When we give students handouts or direct them towards information that might aid them in their academic work, we need to acknowledge why that information is important or credible to our subject areas. Have we communicated to them the importance of running their information through a CRAPP test to see if it is worth while? Is there an author present? If not, should we question it's credibility? 

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Including a citation and reference list on our day-to-day teaching resources reinforces that we did not create this information, we curated it and when we ask students to do the same, we have led by example. It takes a village, and we need to acknowledge that village.

"It is hard to expect respect when we don't show it", the same motto can be used with citation and referencing.

When was the last time you included a citation in your work? Did you include a reference list? Or was it all a bit too hard. Were you a bit too time pressed to acknowledge that the photocopied notes are in fact someone else's hard work? Then how can we expect our students to regularly use citation and referencing in their work?

And if you are not sure how to introduce this to your students, have a chat with your friendly Teacher Librarian (that is ... if you are lucky enough to have one in your school).

References:

Martin, D., & Angelito, C. (2018). Who’s citing whom and who’s citing what. Retrieved from https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/who-s-citing-whom-and-who-s-citing-what?

Teaching about 'The Art of Gratitude'

There was an article in The Age a while back "Is gratitude for the selfish and the smug?" that got me thinking about what we teach our children about 'the art of gratitude'.

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Many moons ago when I taught in a small Catholic girls school I was taken back by the generosity of the students and the way in which they displayed gratitude towards their teachers throughout the school year.

I have never taught in a school quite like it since. These students, who were far from entitled, took the time to say thank-you to their teachers for the work that they did. Part of this was upbringing, part was the values that school instilled in the students.

Gratitude appeared in many forms from easter eggs to thank-you cards. At the end of each school year, each form group would collectively buy a small gift for their teacher. The total cost $20, with a card saying thank-you. This small act, even though it was orchestrated by the school taught the students that it is right to give thanks.

"With gratitude, people acknowledge the goodness in their lives. In the process, people usually recognise that the source of that goodness lies at least partially outside themselves," (Berry, 2016)

Should we show gratitude to our teachers?

As part of the online Leadership course that I am currently participating in, we have to explore our values as a leader. Gratitude is one of those values that I hold in high regards.  This is probably because of the time spent at Methodist Ladies College in Kew. It was perhaps the most memorable of the various independent schools that I have worked in.  I have a "brag book" to remember my time there filled with letters of gratitude.  Twenty years since I have worked there and although I remember the projects that I worked on and some of the people that I worked with, it is these letters that I cherish the most. Some are from Year Level Coordinators, Heads of School and even David Loader, who was the school Principal. They all acknowledged that I went above and beyond the call of duty to participate or complete a task. I was only there for three years and I have handfuls of these letters demonstrating my commitment to the profession.

Contrast that with another school where I worked there for over 10 years and I have maybe three examples of gratitude. When I spoke to the Head of school about showing more gratitude to the staff, he informed me that the teachers were privileged to work for the private school so why should he need to show more gratitude than that. Needless to say that at the time, they had an issue with staff retention.

You don't need a letterheaded letter to show gratitude to your staff. A post-it on a 'Freddo Frog' or a thank you note for making the effort. It is these little acts of kindness which reinforce the 'value of gratitude' in the organisation.

How do you show gratitude?

Flylady talks about blessing your house daily. Taking the time each day to leave it in a state that is tidy and organised. While most of us struggle with the idea; it is a form of showing gratitude for what we have around us. Making sure that our classrooms are clean for the next teacher is a way of showing gratitude.

Marie Kondo talks about thanking her clothes for the job that they have done by treating them respectfully (Fujikawa, 2018). Not dumping that t-shirt on the ground but thanking it for the job that it has done and then either placing it in the washing pile or back on the hanger.

The WNYC podcast about Gratitude (hosted by Susan Sarandon), raises some important points about how we teach students to both show and use gratitude in their day to day lives. Gratitude is learnt and if we value it in our society we need to teach it.

References:

Berry, S. (2016). Is gratitude for the selfish and the smug?. The Age. Retrieved 27 October 2017, from http://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/life/is-gratitude-for-the-selfish-and-the-smug-20160104-glz8ej.html

Fujikawa, J. (2018). Marie Kondo and the Cult of Tidying Up. [online] WSJ. Available at: https://www.wsj.com/articles/marie-kondo-and-the-tidying-up-trend-1424970535 [Accessed 6 May 2018].

WNYC. (2018). The Science of Gratitude. [online] Available at: https://www.wnyc.org/story/science-gratitude/ [Accessed 6 May 2018].

#Freebookmarks for your #schoollibrary Animal Bookmarks

Some bookmarks that I made on Canva. You should be able to click on the images print them off on A4 cardstock.

Did your students enjoy them? Ours did!